Lesser-known Caribbean destinations

Anguilla. Turks and Caicos.

Bonaire is beautiful

I love Martinique and Tortola.

Check out the Bacalar and Chetumal region of Mexico. Not overrun with tourists. Most tourists tend to be locals.

Check the state dept travel advisory website-- almost every Caribbean island is rated Level 4: do not travel.

Haiti

Puerto Rico. They are the most Covid-safety place I've seen in the US. Great winter weather, no customs to deal with.

I love Puerto Rico but I wouldn't call it a quiet and non crowded destination if that is what OP is looking for r7.

Puerto Rico was pretty low key for New Year's Eve. And it was definitely quiet the rest of the time we were just there. Vieques is quite nice.

R7 Posting from 2018.

Try the Dominican... but not Punta Cana. There is a sprawling resort called Casa de Campo. Lots of villas for rent, a hotel, multiple golf courses, beach clubs, restaurants, etc. Take day excursions to Isla Saona and Isla Isla Catalina.

They are lots of events, parties, big name DJ's etc during the week of New Years. It's as hectic or as quiet as you want to make it and there is literally no reason to leave the grounds.

OP, you didn't specify if the odds of being robbed or killed were part of your consideration of not.

If you want the robbing and killing, then Philly is MINT!

West coast of Nicaragua. My brother (American) is stationed in Managua for 2 years and he and his wife drive to the coast every weekend to surf. Beautiful resorts. Very affordable. He says it’s safe.

Love Island, Fantasy Island, Gilligan's Island, Temptation Island, Epstein Island, Guantanamo Bay. . .

Interestingly, there are only two Caribbean islands that have a majority white population. One is St. Barts, which everyone knows and is ridiculously expensive. The other is Saba, which is nearby, but most people don't even know it exists.

La Isla Bonita

Barbuda is great. I also enjoyed Isla Mujeres off of Cancun. It's about a 30 minute-ish ferry ride. Very chill, everyone gets around on diesel golf carts.

[quote] Barbuda is great.

The correct spelling is Bermuda.

Kokomo

Thanks for the tip about Saba. I had never heard of it. Wow.

When I was a young gayling many years ago, the first time I ever heard of St. Croix was when someone on a soap opera mentioned it as where they were going on their honeymoon.

It sounded so exotic.

It's funny now so many interesting locations and places are so run-of-the-mill now, but once were so glamorous.

All the old "Road to..." movies with Hope, Crosby, and Lamour were like this, as well. It sounded so interesting and exciting when I was a little kid.

No R19 the correct spelling of the island R18 is talking about is Barbuda. You are referencing a totally different island.

R21 Saba is a charming place, but there are no beaches… like none whatsoever aside from a few pebble strewn areas that are flat enough to walk across. It’s literally a rock rising right out of the sea, so not a good choice if a beach vacation is your aim.

But they have fantastic scuba diving right offshore because the water gets so deep so quickly. And some beautiful hikes in forests higher up on the island.

It’s only a 20-minute flight from St. Maarten and makes a great two or three day excursion from there.

Les Saintes is a tiny island that’s governed by France as a part of Guadeloupe. Back in the late 1990s it was hyped as being the “next St. Barts”, but never really took off like that… probably because the beaches, although very pretty, aren’t spectacular enough to warrant that kind of comparison.

But it’s a laid back, charming place if you want to get away from mass tourism and crowds of Americans. And of course the food is great, like almost all islands with a French heritage. Spent a week here with friends and we really liked it.

[quote] It’s only a 20-minute flight from St. Maarten and makes a great two or three day excursion from there.

You can also go by ferry if you don't want to fly.

You can also go to Saba for med school. Pretty island, but not much to do.